As I’m sure many of you are aware, we have been publishing a web comic designed and illustrated by the hugely talented Daiju Kurabayashi as a fun way to promote the event and also to help introduce the movies to the independent cinema loving public of Japan. Though the comic is essentially an introduction to each of the movies, we also feel that it would be a great shame for non-Japanese speakers to miss out on what’s happening within the pages of Daiju’s creation. As such, for the benefit of those outside of Japan who are fans of these incredible movies but can’t understand Japanese, I have taken it upon myself to give you all a breakdown of what’s happening in each of the pages. Think of it as an introduction guide for an introduction guide! We hope you enjoy it!!

Part 1: What's CHINKOLYMPICS? (4 pages)

A young chap is hanging around in the lobby of a mini-theater and checking out the flyer section to see what new and interesting screenings are coming up when he suddenly encounters a mysterious person wearing a crazy looking mask and handing out flyers of their own. Looking at the flyer he is floored when he sees the event title, “Chinkolympics”! The mysterious masked person immediately accosts him and bellows “Let me explain!”. The masked being asks him if he’s familiar with the Tokyo Thunderbolt Film Festival to which he immediately fires back with a “Who the hell are you?!”. Removing her mask, the girl introduces herself as the representative in charge of Daiju’s blog, “Kurabayashi no harawata” (The blog name is a play on the Japanese title of “The Evil Dead” btw!). She goes on to say that she is lucky enough to become part of the “Chinkolympics 2016” promotion team and goes on to tell him the date, time, and place of the event.

Noticing the late start time, he asks if the event is an all-nighter to which the girl explains that the Tokyo Thunderbolt Film Festival is an established festival run by Japanese movie director Naoyuki Tomomatsu and that on this occasion, horror blogger HorrorShox will be collaborating with him to hold a horror related movie event. She then explains that the “chinko” (Japanese for cock) in the title is representative of the connecting theme of the 3 main movies and also that the title is a reference to the upcoming 2020 Tokyo Olympics. She further explains that the movies will be horror, suspense, and erotic in nature and also totally uncut. He asks for more information on the films when the girl asks him his name. He says he’s called Watari but before he can ask any more questions, the girl interrupts and says “I’ll tell you more in the next chapter!”

Part 2: The Taint (4 pages)

In this chapter the girl begins to explain to Watari that the Chinkolympics is an event that will screen 3 full-length features and 2 short movies before pointing to the list of titles scheduled to be screened. He asks which one she recommends, to which she replies “All of them!”. Before starting her explanation Watari is obviously curious about the mask on her head that appears to have a life of its own. She says that she made it herself and that it appears in the first movie that she is going to explain, “The Taint”. Donning her shades, Watari is accosted by her mask as she introduces the first of the three feature length movies. She starts by explaining that the hero of the story is a man on the run who is desperately fighting for survival in a world overrun by crazed men who are out to rid the world of the entire female population. Not too impressed by the idea of women being brutally killed, the girl puts his mind at rest by going on a longwinded tirade about the complexities of gender equality that the movie addresses. Watari looks relieved and is happy that the movie is actually a social-political themed movie but she shoots him down immediately by saying that she was lying! Ha!

She goes on to say that people perceive movies differently so he may still get that message from the movie but that ultimately it’s a film with strong influences that harken back to Troma movies and other 80’s horror movies. Oh and the ending has a Charlton Heston “The Omega man” vibe to it! Watari looks excited again but she cuts him off by telling us that she will introduce “Banjo” in the next chapter!

Part 3: Banjo (4 pages)

This chapter starts off with the sudden appearance of Ronnie, a main character in the movie “Banjo”. The girl explains to Watari that Ronnie is actually an imaginary friend which confuses him no end since they can both see him! Ignoring Watari’s pleas, she continues to introduce the 2nd feature length movie, “Banjo”. Grabbing a mic, the girl begins to tell the sad story of Peltzer Arbuckle, a man who has a nasty lover, a nasty boss, nasty coworkers, and finds himself getting caught up in a nasty accident involving his own penis. Amongst all this despair, his friend, Ronnie, appears before him to make his life even more interesting. She explains that as soon as Ronnie appears on the scene people start dying at an alarming rate. Watari believes he understands by suggesting that Peltzer is actually schizophrenic and that he is somewhat like Jekyll and Hyde. Ronnie tells Watari that since he is imaginary, he can only “speak” to people but then he contradicts himself by saying he can actually kill people too! Desperate to understand who Ronnie is, Watari suggests that maybe he’s like a Freddy Krueger style character or like an American comic book hero like Deadpool that breaks down the 4th barrier. The girl admits that she honestly doesn’t know exactly what Ronnie is but goes on to say that the film is like a black horror comedy that will leave you wondering what scenes in the movie were real or not. A modern day Faust-like story if you will! Looking back at the reader, the girl grins and announces “Next up, “The Possessed Libido!”

Part 4: The Possessed Libido (8 pages)

Watari looks a bit shy as the girl and Ronnie ask him if he’s seen any erotic movies before. He says he hasn’t before innocently asking what the difference is between erotic movies and porn movies. The girl says that’s a tough question and one that has many different answers but before she can continue, the skies turn black causing the city citizens to flee in terror. As the girl points to the skies, two gigantic people come crashing down to earth; “The Possessed Libido” director, Minoru Kunizawa and screenplay writer, Yuta Takahashi! Though terrified, the girl urges Watari to ask both men the same question he just asked her. Feebly repeating his question to the two giants, Takahashi is first to respond by booming “The difference depends on whether the actresses uses tape on their privates or not!!!” Kunizawa offers Watari a more thoughtful answer however by explaining that in porn an actress is able to perform in a natural manner for the audience that shows her personal sensibilities but, Erotic or “Pink” movies on the other hand, are a completely made up world where the actresses are playing the role of somebody else. “This is the biggest difference between both genres and it’s something I make sure to tell every new actress that comes my way!” he says. Making sure that Watari is satisfied with their response to his question, the girl clicks her fingers and makes the two giants disappear before starting her introduction of the 3rd full-length feature, “The Possessed Libido”. Grabbing her mic again, the girl tells the story of Takuma Kuga and his wife, Shiori. When Takuma undergoes an operation on his penis the couple’s sex-life is given a new lease of life much to Shiori’s delight but, before long, Takuma begins to change. In short, Takuma’s new implanted cock is slowly eating away at his personality in what Ronnie tells Watari is a Jekyll and Hyde like twist much like “Banjo”. Watari looks confused and asks if somebody’s cock in “Banjo” gets possessed too but the girl is quick to explain that though both movies share a common thread in which a cock is responsible for the breakdown of two people’s lives, this movie heads in a totally different direction. Watari starts acting smart and begins making guesses about what happens in the movie but the girl, bored of his suppositions, whispers in his ear what really happens during the final act of the movie which blows his mind totally. She then teases him and says that he’s more interested in Pink movies than he first admitted, to which Ronnie sticks up for him and says that it’s important to watch movies of all genres in order to really understand their art. With this, the girl faces the reader and declares that she will introduce the 2 short movies in the next chapter!!